Cell basics + neurons

Bio

Neuron

A nerve cell that transmits signals through electrical impulses.

Astrocytes

Supporting cells in the nervous system that help maintain the environment around neurons.

Cell Membrane

The outer layer of a cell, made of a phospholipid bilayer, controlling what enters and exits the cell.

Phospholipid Bilayer

A double layer of phospholipids that forms the cell membrane, with hydrophobic tails and hydrophilic heads.

Ion Channels

Protein structures that allow ions to move in and out of a cell through the membrane.

Sodium/Potassium Pumps

Proteins that actively transport sodium out of the cell and potassium into the cell to maintain cellular balance.

Ligand-Gated Channels

Ion channels that open in response to the binding of a chemical messenger, allowing specific ions to enter.

Voltage-Gated Channels

Ion channels that open in response to changes in electrical voltage across the cell membrane.

G-Protein Coupled Receptors

Receptors that, upon binding with a ligand, initiate a signaling cascade within the cell.

Neurotransmitters

Chemicals released by neurons to communicate with other neurons at synapses.

Vesicles

Small membrane-bound packages that store and transport neurotransmitters and other substances within the cell.

Dendrites

Branches of a neuron that receive messages from other neurons and carry them towards the cell body.

Axon

The long fiber of a neuron that transmits electrical impulses away from the cell body to other neurons.

Myelin Sheath

A protective covering around the axon that speeds up the transmission of signals.

Nodes of Ranvier

Gaps in the myelin sheath that facilitate the rapid conduction of nerve impulses.

Action Potential

A rapid change in voltage across a neuron that allows signals to travel down the axon.

Resting Potential

The electrical charge difference across the membrane of a resting neuron, typically around -70 mV.

Depolarization

The process in which the cell becomes less negative, typically due to sodium ions entering the cell.

Hyperpolarization

A state where the inside of the neuron becomes more negative than the resting potential, often following repolarization.

Synaptic Terminal

The end part of a neuron where neurotransmitters are released into the synapse.

Signal Propagation

The process by which an electrical signal travels along the axon from the cell body to the axon terminals.

Cellular Transport

The mechanisms by which materials move into, out of, and within cells, including the use of proteins like kinesin.

synapses are not ____ with dendrites

only

G protein coupled receptor

receptor waiting for molecule to bind to it

this opens large complex cascade of proteins to do a bunch of tasks

are dependent on internal state of cell being in certain state

can open up ion channel or can effect what DNA gets transcribed and turned into protein

Zinc finger protein

involved in various cellular functions, including DNA and RNA binding, transcriptional regulation, and protein-protein interactions, influencing gene expression and signal transduction pathways

certain genes get turned into proteins and others do not (the expression is ver localized very regonally specific and tied to certain functions)